These Carrot Cake Cupcakes have a Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting that is heavenly. These moist cupcakes have just the right amount of spice, and will be perfect for any Spring or Easter celebrations.
Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Carrot Cake is one of those desserts that I don’t make very often. But every time I do, I remember how much I love it, and wonder why I haven’t made for so long. This time around, I opted for carrot cake cupcakes instead of cake. They were fun to serve, and even more fun to eat!
These delightful cupcakes are moist and delicious and have just the right amount of spice. Then there’s the frosting. Oh my. Brown sugar + Cream Cheese adds a rich depth of flavor to the frosting. It was so yummy that I was tempted to eat it by the spoonful. (OK, I may have had one spoonful.) You have got to try it!
How to Make Carrot Cake Cupcakes
These cupcakes are so easy to make and will be the perfect addition to your Spring and Easter celebrations. Here are the steps to take to make them.
- Whisk together flour, soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar, eggs, and oil till thick and foamy, 1-2 minutes. Add the sour cream, vanilla, and carrots and mix well. Add the dry ingredients and stir till just blended.
- Fill paper lined cupcake pans half full. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes. Cool completely.
NOTE: Carrot cake cupcakes are simple to make, but here are a few tips. Don’t overfill the cupcake liners. They should be about half full. The cupcakes come out pretty flat, and that is just fine. It’s easier to frost them that way!
I hope you’ll give these cupcakes a try. They might just become a new favorite after one bite!
For more great Easter recipes, be sure to check out:
- Easter Bunny Rolls
- Easter Dirt Cake
- Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Rice Krispies Easter Cups
- Easter Basket Cookie Cups
Carrot Cake Cupcakes VIDEO:
Carrot Cake Cupcakes recipe
These Carrot Cake Cupcakes have a Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting that is heavenly. These moist cupcakes have just the right amount of spice, and will be perfect for any Spring or Easter celebrations.
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1/2 + 1/8 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 + 1/8 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups finely grated carrots
Frosting:
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla
- dash of salt
- 3 cups powdered sugar (more or less, if needed)
Instructions
-
Whisk together flour, soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
-
In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar, eggs, and oil till thick and foamy, 1-2 minutes. Add the sour cream, vanilla, and carrots and mix well. Add the dry ingredients and stir till just blended.
-
Fill paper lined cupcake pans half full. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes. Cool completely.
-
For frosting, beat together cream cheese, butter, and brown sugar till smooth. Let sit for 5-10 minutes till brown sugar dissolves completely. Add vanilla, salt, and enough powdered sugar to make a frosting thick enough to pipe. Use a large star tip to frost cupcakes.
Recipe Notes
This makes enough frosting to generously pipe frosting on the cupcakes. If you will be spreading it on, you can cut the recipe in half.
I’m dying over that Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting!! Seriously, that looks like a total dream. Thanks for sharing with us, Kara! These look amazing. For more delicious recipes by her, head on over to Creations by Kara!
My daughter had a baby and it died today ????????????????????????????????????????so this post is making me happy
Oh, I am so sorry!!! That is heart breaking. I’m glad this could make you feel better 🙂
I’ve been looking everywhere, I found a great blog about the carrot cake cupcakes. thanks very helpful at all. although I am male but love to make cupcakes. 🙂
Thanks so much and nothing wrong with that 🙂
I really want to make these but I love pineapple tidbits in my carrot cake. Do you think I would need to do anything different if I add them to combat the extra moisture?
I wish I knew. I haven’t tried adding pineapple. Maybe just squeeze the liquid out of it first. Wish I could be of more help. Good luck!
Will the recipe work good for a cake? I made these as cupcakes last week and they were amazing.
I haven’t tried, but I don’t see why not. I’m glad you liked them! Thank you. If you try it as a cake, let me know how it turns out.
I just made these and they are wonderful! The cupcakes are yummy and moist and the frosting is amazing! I added some pecans to the batter before baking and next time I’ll try raisins. Thanks for sharing!
The carrot cake cupcakes are delicious! I added some pecans and they were moist and flavorful. The frosting was amazing! Thanks for sharing.
Glad to share!! I am so glad you liked them! Thank you for letting me know!
Should I be using light or dark brown sugar for the frosting?
I like to use light when I bake 🙂 Hope that helps and hope you like it!
Hey! Can you suggest an alternative for sour cream? I can’t find any here in my country ????
You could try buttermilk. I would just google the amounts though. Hope that helps!
Thanks for responding i’ll try with that! 🙂
I made these yesterday and OMG! Sooo good. The brown sugar frosting is to die for!
Thanks so much for sharing!
Glad you liked it! Thank you for sharing!
These sound delicious! I can’t wait to try them! Thank you for the great recipe.
They are!! I hope you like them! I’m glad to share 🙂
i only try the cupcakes and i must say they are so tasty thanks for sharing your recipe from now on ill be making them often
You are so welcome!! Thank you so much for letting me know & for trying them!!
These were delicious and easy to make. I cut the sugar to 3/4 for the cupcake and with the frosting, it was hardly noticeable. I’ll be making these again soon!
Yay!! Thank you for letting me know!!
Will these be ok in the fridge after baking? I was wanting to make them the night before Easter.
I am sure they will 🙂 They will be a hit!
I cannot get canola oil anywhere where I live what can I use instead?
I would just use vegetable oil 🙂
do you use plain or self rising flour , and can you use cake flour ?
I just use all purpose flour. I am sure you could use cake flour, though I personally haven’t tried.
Ok
I made these for Easter and they are AMAZING. I think I could eat four in one sitting. Highly recommend this recipe!
LOL!!! It is easy to do 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Yummy!!! Love carrot cake! These look so amazing! ???? I’ll have to try these.
I hope you do!! They really are 🙂 Thank you!
So yummy! I used 1/4 cup mashed banana and 1/4 avocado oil instead of canola oil to make it healthier and they were fantastic! Next time I might use a little but more spice.
That’s a great option! I am so glad you liked them!! Thank you for sharing!
GREAT RECIPE – made these cupcakes a couple times and just love them. My only struggle is the frosting. Often not stiff enough to pipe beautifully like your pictures? Any suggestions? Possibly beating too much?
You may just need to add more powdered sugar. More will thicken it up 🙂 Thank you so much for trying them!
I can’t wait to try these!! Did you use light or dark brown sugar for the frosting?
I like to use light brown sugar 🙂 Hope you like them!
Hi, this sounds amazingly delicious and simple! I was wondering how much, if at all, you try to squeeze the moisture out of the shredded carrots before using them.
Yes, you can. I don’t think you need to though. It adds a little more moisture 🙂 But, you totally can, if you are worried about them being soggy.
Thx! 🙂
This recipe was awesome. Super moist and the taste is OMG..sublime. I made one small change…just added 1/2 cup crushed pineapples and just used 1 cup carrots…but hands down one of the best carrot cakes recipes I’ve come across. great recipe!!! ????????????
Love hearing that!!! Thank you so much for sharing & giving it a try!
Can I use oat flour for this recipe?
I have not tried, but I am sure you can 😉
Hi, i was just wondering if i could use vegetable oil in place of the canola oil?
You sure could 🙂 I hope you like them!
Made these as mini cupcakes over the weekend. Delicious! Followed recipe exactly, and put one tablespoon batter in each mini muffin, It made 48 mini’s exactly, and took about 16 minutes at 350 to bake. I did pipe the frosting, and probably ended up with about 1/4 of the frosting leftover.
Oh, and I also put some chopped pecans on top, because yum.
Glad you liked them!! Adding pecans is a great idea 🙂 Thank you for sharing!
Tried this recipe and everyone loved it! Best carrot cake recipe ever
Yay!! Love to hear that! Thank you so much for sharing that!